Song Dynasty

Chapter 251

Woo woo woo.

Three horns.

"Crash!" A large group of waterfowl flew up from the reeds by the roadside, slanted across the sparkling water, and then were engulfed by the red sunset light.

The night in Hunan gets dark late. At this time, the sunset glow in the west is still red, but everything around is already dim.

The cool autumn wind stirs the reed flowers, and white catkins like snow dance between the sky and the earth. The air has a unique fishy smell, which is very uncomfortable to smell.

There are paddy fields everywhere, but the fields are full of weeds. In the twilight, apart from the sound of waterfowl flapping their wings, there is also a faint wolf horn.This place was originally the core area of ​​Dingzhou. Judging from the surroundings, it should have been a prosperous water town in the past, but at this moment when the cooking smoke should be rising, there is not a single living person in sight.

No, there are crisp horseshoes and rumbling wheels, as well as the sound of chaotic footsteps.

A group of men and horses came from the north. They rode war horses and pulled carts full of goods. The chaos was mixed with the clanging of swords and the clattering of armor.

Looking closely, there were more than a hundred people in this team, but they probably walked for too long, and everyone looked tired, with dirt all over their heads and bodies.They staggered from side to side as they walked, and they were already exhausted.

On the cart was a red flag with a big black eagle embroidered on it.

No need to ask, seeing this eagle flag, everyone knew that they were Wang Shen's soldiers.

But now this invincible Sizhou army is staggering, looking tired, like a refugee fleeing.

Yes, this can no longer be called an army, especially the middle-aged man who seems to be an officer riding at the front, dozing off constantly, his head pointing forward like a chicken pecking at rice lit.

Among the more than a hundred people, there was only one strong young officer who was still standing upright, holding a long stick in his hand, looking into the distance with piercing eyes, and the setting sun cut a huge and strong silhouette behind him.

The young officer frowned and looked away, looked at the messy and disfigured subordinates behind him, and then at the long convoy, with a look of hatred on his face.

Just when he was about to have a seizure, the officer-like man suddenly woke up, reached out to wipe the drool from the corner of his mouth, and asked in surprise: "General Wu Tuo, what is this place, and how far is it from Dingzhou?"

"I don't know. There are rivers and swamps everywhere here, and there are many forks. Turning around and turning around, my head is dizzy. Straight lady thief, I haven't met a single person after walking for a whole day, and I can't find anyone if I want to ask. . Judge Du, you old man has woken up. It's getting late. Shall we find a high place with no water to camp and rest, and we'll talk about it tomorrow after resting."

"Well, the soldiers must be hungry too, let's rest first. I don't know how to lead troops to fight, and everything depends on the general."

That's right, these two people are Du Shu and Wu Tuo.

As early as half a month ago, they bid farewell to Du Chong and hurried all the way to Dingzhou by boat to join the main force of Wang Shen's Beiwei army. They finally landed on the shore the day before yesterday and entered the territory of Dingzhou.However, this place has been beaten to nothing by Li Chengjun and Zhong Xiang's repeated tug-of-war.The terrain was really too complicated, they turned around on the road for three days, they turned their heads, and they didn't know where Dingzhou City and Wang Junshi were.

When he came back this time, Du Chong was generous and asked his nephew what else he needed, just ask.

What he meant was that Du Shu now settled his family in Jianghan, and he was a man who liked to enjoy himself. With a large number of people in his family, and Wang Shen's salary was low, he wanted to live a poor life in the future.If there is anything you need at home, just ask.

Du Shu didn't think of this level. He had no choice but to be stupid.He thought that Du Chong asked the Sizhou Army what supplies they needed, and after thinking about it, he honestly said that they needed cloth.

It is already early autumn, and winter will begin in two months. The winter in the south is extremely difficult.When he left Huangzhou, the army was living in hardship, and the winter clothes were not yet available, so he simply took this opportunity to speak to the Jiankang left-behind department.

Du Shu didn't know that after taking down Anlu, Wang Shen not only solved the problem of winter clothes, but also made a fortune.

Therefore, when he came to Dingzhou this time, he brought ten carts of linen.In this troubled world, this thing can be used directly by money, which can be regarded as a great wealth.

"Rest, set up camp." Wu Tuo nodded, and the order was passed on quickly.

These 40 sergeants were 60 soldiers recruited by Wu Tuo from the navy when he set off from Huangzhou, and he brought more than [-] village braves.The troops went all the way from Huangzhou to Jiankang along the river, and encountered many water bandits on the way. Relying on Wu Tuo's bravery, they have not suffered any losses.

Along the way, Wu Tuo used military law to restrain the troops. After these battles, the soldiers finally looked a little better, at least much stronger than the water and fat bandits in the Yangtze River.However, in Wu Tuo's view, they are far from regular Sizhou Army warriors.If you encounter a bandit army that is good at field battles, you may not be able to get anything good.

This time the troops went deep into the territory of Dingzhou, he was vaguely worried.Regardless of his tiredness, he ordered people to gather ten carts together to form a small circle.In this way, even if the thieves came suddenly, relying on the small circle and the cart like a low wall, they could resist for a long time.

It's a pity that the terrain of this place is really bad, surrounded by water pools, rotten fields and water forks on the side of the road. As soon as the battle was over, a large car accidentally got stuck in the mud.The car tilted, and the sackcloth on it was scattered all over the place.

Wu Tuo felt annoyed and scolded a few words, only to realize that something was wrong.He checked back and forth for a long time, and found that only the ground of the official road was still solid, and the carts could only be lined up in a long line.

"Forget it, let's do this for now. Tonight, everyone should not be careless, and take turns to be on duty at night."

Seeing that Wu Tuo stopped tossing, everyone was relieved and sat down on the ground.After a while, the bonfire was lit, and the smell of food filled the air.

Some were talking and laughing loudly, some were eating rice wine, and some were so tired that they cut reeds with a knife and spread them on the ground.

"General Wu Tuo, the numbness is over, come and have a few drinks with me." Du Shu saw the helpless Wu Tuo, and ordered his followers to pass over a bowl of hot wine, and asked, "Are the soldiers settled properly?"

Wu Tuo drank the hot wine in one gulp, wiped his mouth, sighed, and said, "This place is wet and dirty, and the terrain is too dangerous. It's not a suitable place to set up camp. If the bandits suddenly arrive, they will be in great trouble. It's gone." He said, looking around.

When the autumn wind hits, the reeds on all sides are surging like waves, as if there are thousands of troops hidden in them.

Suddenly, Wu Tuo felt an indescribable worry.

Du Shu smiled: "General Wu, I'm a layman when it comes to fighting. You said that this place is not suitable for camping, but now it's completely dark, and there is no way to find another place. Yes, this place is not conducive to large troops. Our army is trapped here, but if the thieves come to attack, there is no way to start. Don’t worry, it’s fine. Anyway, it’s just one night, so we just need to strengthen our guard and leave at dawn.”

"It can only be like this." Wu Tuo nodded sullenly: "This damned place, after walking for two days, I haven't met a living person. Even if I want to ask for directions, there is nowhere to ask. Just don't get lost."

Du Shu comforted: "Don't be anxious, general. You won't be able to solve the problem if you are anxious. Instead of worrying about this, it's better to get a good night's sleep and refresh yourself. Take your time and find the way."

Wu Tuo smiled wryly. Judge Du didn't know whether he was open-minded or heartless. He was never in a hurry when encountering problems: "Hey, that's the only way to go."

After eating dry food, Wu Tuo stared at this big car fan.

There was the sound of water, the sound of wind, and the sound of soldiers playing around.

The bonfire was whistling in the wind, flickering on and off, but how could I sleep soundly.

I don't know how long it took, but suddenly, there was a "crack", and when I opened my eyes, it turned out that the bamboo pole used by a soldier as a crutch was accidentally burned and cracked.

The sound of "pop" was like a firecracker exploding, and a small cloud of dust rose up.

A few soldiers laughed and cursed and stood up.

Wu Tuo couldn't sleep anymore. At this time, he realized that there were glistening dewdrops on the shaft of the chariot, the iron armor and weapons standing on one side, and the weather was very cold.

"What time is it now?"

A soldier said: "Ghost knows, it will be dawn in an hour and a half!"

"Shh, keep your voice down, don't disturb the sleep of the brothers." Wu Tuo was surprised in his heart, he didn't expect that his bewildered stare would pass for so long.

There was no moon, no skylight, and even the burning bonfire was faint. It was pitch black in the distance, only the sound of water, wind and gurgling water.

There was still an hour and a half to go, but the dawn was so dark and so cold.

Wu Tuo shook his head, so what if he went to sleep at this time.

He reached out and patted the soldier's shoulder: "You go to sleep for a while, and I will be on duty."

"Yes, thank you General Wu."

Wu Tuo silently turned up the bonfire, added some water to the clay pot, sat on the fire, and knocked a small piece of tea cake into it.

Then stared at the bonfire in a daze.

I don't know how long it took before someone sniffed: "It's delicious tea, General Wu's skill in making tea is pretty good!"

Looking back, it was Du Shu.

Wu Tuo replied: "It turned out to be Judge Du. I know what tea art is. It's really good tea, but it was bought from Jiankang by the end general. The military envoy is fond of tea, so I bought some for him and brought him back."

Du Shu said with a smile: "Wang Daosi is addicted to tea, and he can't taste good or bad. It's just for refreshment. Let's prepare a drink. Come, pour me a cup, anyway, I'm awake too. Let's drink water while drinking water." Wait until dawn."

"That's a good feeling." Handing over a cup of tea, Wu Tuo suddenly said: "Just now, the general recalled the road he traveled in the past two days, and recalled the map he had seen before, and suddenly knew where this place is."

Du Shu hurriedly asked, "Where are we now?"

(End of this chapter)